


The Late Night Low Down Undead Blues

by Hanako_Cinnamon



Category: Re-Animator (1985)
Genre: Coffee, F/M, Sarcasm, dead horror author shoutouts, general prickliness, grad school woes, more coffee, peripheral undead raising
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-30
Updated: 2014-04-30
Packaged: 2018-01-21 09:40:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 16,829
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1546226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hanako_Cinnamon/pseuds/Hanako_Cinnamon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sarcasm, swearing, and coffee. Oh, and some sex. No onscreen violence, unless you count bimbo-bashing. Mostly movieverse, with a few literary references. OC, M/F<br/>A long time ago (well, 2005) in an archive far far away I wrote a Re-Animator story to amuse myself and to help fill out a very small selection of fanfic. There were no het stories so I supplied one. It is more silly than anything else, but it was fun to write and may be fun to read. Enjoy! Or not! It's up to you!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

  
          Herbert West did not believe in luck, and so he didn't bother thanking any lucky stars when the opportunity to join the Miskatonic University medical college mid-term presented itself. Nor did he believe in Fate, and therefore considered the meeting between himself and Daniel Cain, and the finding of a house well-equipped to continue his research, to be nothing more than a useful coincidence. But if there was a God, he had quite a few complaints filed away about He, She, or Its so-called greatest creation that he would be happy to bring up at the first available meeting.  
          For instance, his assistant's incessant chatter about the minutiae of university life that bore no relation to anything useful, and which interested West not a whit. Or his frail constitution, which caused him to occasionally succumb to shock in the wake of their more successful experiments. But worst of all was his dogged insistence on dating a woman who, for having grown up in the environment of the university, showed no intelligence beyond what was necessary to pick out clothes and order from expensive restaurants, no real pastimes beyond gossip and snooping in other people's private matters, and certainly no ambition beyond marrying Dan and settling down to a co-ordinatingly decorated life at the country club with 2.4 children. And Daniel, talented but completely unreliable when it came to women, allowed her to lead him around by the ring in his nose. Or possibly one around his testicles. Being forced to conduct his experiments in secret was frustrating enough; to have to lose valuable time and effort to his assistant's gossiping and skirt-chasing was maddening.   
          And now, just when he thought perhaps his assistant was ready to buckle down to work, he'd come charging excitedly into the kitchen and brushed off West's attempts at coaxing him down to the lab.   
          West sighed. "Daniel, we are getting close to a breakthrough. We are wasting valuable time."   
          "Look, I'll help out tomorrow, I promise." It was at these times Cain's resemblance to an eager Golden Retriever shone through most strongly. "But I've got a guest coming tonight, so try not to scare her away, all right?"   
          West raised an eyebrow. "My, my, Daniel, it's scarcely two days since Miss Armitage left in a huff. You've found another compliant co-ed already?"   
          "No, West, and Megan's just a little mad. She'll come around. Anyway, you know I've been having trouble in my Ethics classes? I've been assigned a tutor. Check it out!"   
          He produced a small slip of yellow paper from his folder and handed it to West, who read the single line of information with a shrug.   
          "Patricia O'Halloran. So?"   
          "I've seen her around campus. She's bookish, but all right to look at. Anyway, you know those librarian types. They seem cold at first, but they're wildcats in the sack. I figure, if I'm going to be stuck with this tutoring thing, I may as well enjoy myself."   
          "I was under the impression that you were engaged to Miss Halsey."   
          "In case you don't remember, West- and you should considering it was half your fault to begun with- when Megan left here she said she never wanted to see me again. Now I figure that will last a couple of weeks, but in the meantime she can't get angry at me if I go elsewhere for a little while."   
          "Strange...I hadn't thought you to be the manipulative type."   
          "Manipulative? Bullshit! It's the truth! Between Megan walking out on me, our studies, and helping with your little science project in the basement, I'm stressed out the gills! I just need something to take my mind off it all. And anyway, Megan will never know. I mean, I'd never want to hurt her- I do love her, you know."   
          "Of course you do, Daniel, " West replied flatly, "Now if you'd please excuse me, I have work to do."   
          Yes, if there were in fact a deity of any sort, He, She, or It would be getting a strongly-worded letter.   
  
          Patricia O'Halloran sighed and glanced again at the address card in her hand, relieved that she had found the right house at last. Her directions had been sketchy enough without adding distance into the equation. True, it was only a quarter-mile from the campus, if one cut across the viaduct and walked on the train tracks. But the prospect of hiking it several times a week in order to take on yet another tutoring job was not what she would have chosen, had there been any choice in the matter. Miskatonic was far from an inexpensive school, though, and her department far from sympathetic, and so here she was, overworked and underpaid and in the middle of a thesis, tutoring three students and about to add the fourth.   
          'Maybe this one will at least have interesting questions.'   
          Her knock was answered almost immediately and with disconcerting eagerness.   
          "Patricia?"   
          "Hallie, " she said firmly.   
          "All right, Hallie. I'm Dan."   
          "Well, Dan, I'm scheduled to be here four nights a week until your grades improve. Dr. Bierce made it pretty clear that he thought you should be pulling an A in his and Dr. Blackwood's classes. I guess he wants to see you finish the year out with honors."   
          "Yeah, and he's too much of a tight-ass to let me slide."   
          Hallie resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Yes, well, it wouldn't be much of a degree if they just handed it to you. So, let's get started. Can you show me what it is you're working on?"   
          "Sure, sure, come on in. Do you want some coffee?"   
          "That'd be great, thanks."   
          "Hey, if you can explain this stuff to me, I'll give you anything." Cain grinned and hit the switch on the coffee maker.   
          "The coffee will be fine, thanks."   
          "Okay. So anyway, we're working on this stuff. The Decameron, or something."   
          Hallie glanced down at the book on the table. "The Republic, you mean. The Decameron's like the Canterbury Tales, only with the Black Plague."   
          "Oh, right. Anyway, there's this thing about a man in a cave, and I realize it's a metaphor for something, but-"   
          Hallie restrained a deep sigh and dug in her backpack for her notes.   
          The scent of coffee drew West up from the lab, as Cain had known it would. He had never seen West eat, although the pile of empty TV dinner boxes next to the garbage seemed to point towards him subsisting on something other than research, but he did go through enough coffee to send a truck driver into cardiac arrest.   
          True to form West turned up by the machine so fast it looked as though he had appeared there. His eyes were fever-bright. Cain reflected that he had never seen West sleep, either, but he guessed it had something to do with the coffee.   
          "Is there enough to go around?"   
          Cain handed him a mug from the counter. "Uh, yeah, Herbert, knock yourself out. Hallie, this is my roommate, Herbert West."   
          Hallie smiled. "Nice to meet you, Mr. West."   
          "Likewise, Miss O'Halloran. What is your field of study?"   
          "Philosophy."   
          "Ah. Are you a masochist or an idiot?"   
          Dan shouted, "West!" but Hallie only grinned.   
          "Neither. I wanted to pay sixty thousand dollars for a degree that won't get me a job. I suppose I just enjoy exercises in futility."   
          "On a grand scale, apparently." And with that, West strode out of the kitchen.   
          Dan stared after him for a moment. "Well, that's Herbert, " he mumbled finally, "He hates everyone. Sorry about that."   
          "Eh, don't worry about it. He's much more sociable than half my professors. Better manners, too."   
          "So, about the cave thing..."   
          After an hour, Hallie was fairly certain that Cain now understood the "cave thing, " as he continued to put it. They were about to begin on the next chapter when Cain excused himself briefly, citing the coffee as a possible culprit. She was grateful for the break, and was looking in the cupboard for a water glass when West appeared in the doorway.   
          "Hey again, " she nodded, "Up for a refill?"   
          He nodded back. "I anticipate a long night of research."   
          "Lucky you. I anticipate a long night of explaining basic concepts to your roommate over and over and over again."   
            "Well, that's your job, is it not?" His voice was unsympathetic. Hallie supposed that if she had to live with Cain, she'd likely be unsympathetic, too.   
          "Sadly, it is. So, do you?"   
          "Do I what? The glasses are in the next cabinet over, if that's what you're looking for."   
          "Thanks. And, do you hate everyone? That's how I was introduced to you, and I must admit to being curious."   
          West rolled his eyes. "I do not hate everyone, Miss O'Halloran. I would hardly have dedicated my life to studying medicine if I hated humanity. Rather, I am irritated and disgusted by the way that most people squander their potential talents and spend their lives in pursuit of momentary pleasures. There are so very few who develop the will and drive for serious scientific work."   
          "Well, not everyone can be scientists. We do need people to sweep floors and grow food and make dishwashing detergent, after all. Can I ask what you're working on?"   
          "I'm studying death."   
          "Ah, " Hallie rinsed the glass under the tap before filling it. "Forgive me, but I didn't realize that there was all that much to study. I assume it's more complicated than just, 'Oh look, I think he's dead.' "   
          "It is a little more complicated, yes. And, if you'll excuse me, I need to get back to my research. I assume Daniel has mentioned that the basement is off-limits?"   
          "He hadn't, but it's not my house, so I wouldn't have gone poking around anyway. Thanks for the heads'-up, though."   
          "You're welcome."


	2. Chapter Two

  
          Four nights a week was not enough to improve Cain's grades in a sufficiently quick manner, and Hallie was charged by his advisor with adding two more study sessions to her already overcrowded schedule. At first West watched her suspiciously, but as the weeks went on, even he became accustomed to Hallie's near-constant presence in the house. At the end of a month, after she had shown no interest in the cellar, West ceased locking the door whenever he was away from it for even a moment, and settled for locking it when he was out of the house. She didn't avoid him as Miss Halsey did; in fact, she seemed happy to talk to someone besides Cain, and after being in the kitchen for a few of his assistant's confused mumblings on Socrates and philosophy in general, West felt he understood.   
          Tonight was a rare night; he was working in his own room instead of the basement laboratory. There were a few chemical equations in the late Dr. Gruber's work that he had so far left untouched; in the beginning he'd dismissed them as unusable, but in light of some of his own recent experiments he was beginning to think that they contained information he could use.   
          The sounds coming through the open doorway were the normal back-and-forth banter as Hallie tried patiently to explain various nuances of Plato's writings on Socrates, and Dan sighed and mumbled and complained. It was business as usual, and West registered it only as a normal background hum, at least until Dan's voice took on more than its usual amount of pleading.   
          "Why do they make us take this stuff? All I need is to memorize the Hippocratic oath, and I'm good to go."   
          "But don't you want to find out how Hippocrates came to his conclusions?"   
          "What does it matter, as long as he did?"   
          "Look, philosophy is the method by which we create a rational procedure for thinking about things. You are more likely to come to a viable solution to your problems if you have a useful, ordered way of thinking about them."   
          "But I'm going to be a doctor. I'm going to help people with science, and my hands. They're good hands. I could be a brain surgeon, a heart surgeon...See how sensitive they are?"   
          There was a brief pause, and then the unmistakable rasp of a chair sliding swiftly backwards across the kitchen floor.   
          "Dan! What the hell do you think you're doing?"   
          "Aw, Hallie, don't get upset-"   
          "I was hired to tutor you, not screw around with you.   
          "But we've been at this crap for hours. Don't you want a break?"   
          "If you want a break, we'll take a break, but we're not doing anything else. This is not a third-rate porno."   
          "If you weren't so uptight it could be a first-rate one."   
          West rolled his eyes as the sound of a slap echoed down the hallway.   
          "Charming, Daniel, " he muttered.   
          "Look, okay, you're mad. I didn't mean to upset you. Why don't I go take a walk around the block, and when I get back, we'll just go back to studying. All right?"   
          "Make sure it's a long walk. A really long walk. Throw in a short pier if you can find one."   
          "All right, all right, take it easy."   
          West glanced at the clock and closed his book. He heard the front door slam, sighed, and walked out to the kitchen, remembering suddenly why he made it a point never to study in his room.   
          "Everything all right?"   
          Hallie was standing beside the sink, fixing coffee with short, angry movements. She pulled her jacket closer around her and glared towards the front door.   
          "Your roommate, " she said, "Is a dick."   
          "He does tend to let his genitals do his thinking for him. Once you get beyond that, he's not a bad sort."   
          "I have half a mind to call up his girlfriend-"   
          "Fiancee."   
          Hallie blinked. "Fiancee? Jesus! And he's still pulling this hot-for-teacher shit?"   
          "I believe they are currently undergoing relationship difficulties."   
          "No fucking wonder."   
          "I believe it to be more the result of the constant secrecy their relationship entails. Daniel's estranged fiancee is Megan Halsey."   
          Hallie whistled. "Whoa, he's banging the Dean's daughter?"   
          "The noise level would seem to point in that direction. He wishes to make their relationship public, but she disagrees, fearing that her father will forbid them from seeing each other."   
          "Umm, she's over eighteen, right? Basically, she can tell her father where to go and how fast to get there."   
          West pushed the chair back under the table. "Have you met her?"   
          "No, actually. I've seen her around campus, I mean, who hasn't? But that's it."   
          "She seems to suffer from an incredible lack of willpower."   
          "Hey, so does Cain. No wonder they're together."   
          West sighed. "As I said before, Daniel is not a complete waste. He is quite talented, hardworking, and dedicated to his profession."   
          "That, and he's never tried to grab your breasts."   
          "True enough. Could I trouble you to make a full pot? I will be up late this evening."   
          "I...Yeah, sure. It's your coffee anyway."   
          "Just leave it on. I'll be up for it later."   
          West disappeared towards the cellar door.


	3. Chapter Three

        Days spent working at the hospital, even for students, were very long indeed. He'd been called for an early shift, and after a sudden influx of patients ended up working two in a row. Cain had been called in about the time West had been sent home- they'd exchanged weary greetings in the hallway- and Cain had mentioned that he'd canceled his tutoring session, if West wanted to get some of their extracurricular work done that evening.   
          Normally this would have been a cause for minor celebration, but all West really wanted at this point was to come home to an empty house and sleep. But Hallie was there when he walked through the door, and the table was awash in books and papers.   
          He dropped his bag on a free chair and rubbed his temples wearily. "Daniel's been called in for a double shift at the hospital. I thought he called to cancel."   
          "Shit. He probably did, but my idiot roommate didn't leave me a message."   
          "I see."   
          Hallie sighed. "Listen, if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to stay here and study, since I'm here anyway."   
          "Why?"  
          "It would be nice to actually get some work done for once. The library has that weird rule about closing at sunset, and this place is much quieter than my dorm. Do you know the Dunsany building? That's where I got put this year, which means I share a floor with the cheerleading squad. They spend most of their time having practices and pep rallies outside, except when it rains. Then they practice in the hallways. That, and there's apparently a contest going on to see who can fake the loudest orgasm to keep their jock boyfriends feeling macho. I'm surprised I haven't killed any of them yet."   
          "If you do give in to the urge, give me a call, all right? The university can always use fresh specimens."   
          His face was as deadpan as ever and it took her a brief moment to realize that he was making a joke. Hallie laughed, both from what he'd said and her surprise at finding that West had a sense of humor.   
          "I'll definitely keep you in mind. Although if those bitches next door say one more thing about the way I dress, there might not be enough left to use for study."   
          West chuckled and continued on towards his room.


	4. Chapter Four

  
          'Another day, another ditching, ' Hallie thought, shrugging, and began highlighting the more useful bits of text from the book that Cain had helpfully left on the kitchen table. Dr. Wandrei had handed her a syllabus for the class Cain was taking as she'd passed by his office that morning, so even without Cain's presence she could at least do something useful to aid in keeping his grades up. For a moment she toyed with leaving him to his own devices- he was the one skipping out on her anyway- and work on her own sorely unattended thesis. Sadly, though, there were consequences to leaving Cain to the grades he deserved, and none of them would apply to Cain.  
          'I'll wait an hour, ' she thought, glancing from the syllabus to the printed page, 'If he's not here by then, to hell with him.'  
          West, unsurprisingly, appeared as soon as she started the coffee.  
          "I think you'll be on your own again this evening. Miss Halsey appeared earlier, apparently in order to facilitate a reconciliation. I believe that Daniel has gone with her to the student union. I'm afraid I don't have any information as to when they'll be back. I saw her only briefly; she left the moment she saw me in the house."  
          "Oh yeah?" Her tone was conversational, and he shrugged.  
          "She's not fond of me."  
          Hallie grinned. "What, did you ask her about her major?"  
          "She believes that I killed Daniel's cat."  
          "Oh. Why would she think that?"  
          West paused. "It was rather a comedy of errors. From what I saw when I got home from work, it had knocked over the trash can and got into the garbage. Its head was stuck in a half-empty gravy jar. My best guess is that the exertion of trying to free itself, coupled with the liquid contents and lack of free space in the jar, led to its death by suffocation or drowning."  
          "That's awful! Poor kitty...Wait, she thinks you planned that all out or something? It seems a bit normal to blame on someone. I can see the headlines- 'Gravy-Can Cat Killer Strikes Again!' "  
          "Well, there was a bit more to it than that. I cleaned up the mess and put the body in the refrigerator in my room that I use for tissue samples, intending to tell Daniel when he came home. I felt that leaving things the way they were would upset him unnecessarily, and it was fairly unsanitary to put the body in the refrigerator we use for food. Miss Halsey was snooping in my room, found the cat, and naturally assumed that I was the cause of its untimely demise."  
          "Naturally. Did she have any reasons for why you'd want to commit felicide?"  
          "The cat didn't care for me, nor I for him."  
          Hallie laughed. "Wow, if that's the only reason people needed to commit murder, then half the population of the University would have dropped out of sight by now. Certainly several of my professors would have been found with their heads in jars."  
          "Indeed."  
          "Not to mention your roommate."  
          West sighed. "Why do you continue on tutoring him if it frustrates you so much?"  
          "Because Dr. Bierce made it perfectly clear that if his grades don't go up, my scholarships will go down. Cain's some kind of superstar, if you hadn't noticed. I guess he's so brilliant in his medical studies the other departments don't want him to fail in theirs. Bierce is my advisor, so I'm stuck with it. I don't really mind it that much, I guess. It's quiet here, and you're good company when you're around."  
          "I beg your pardon?"  
          Hallie shrugged. "My roommate thinks I'm a freak, Cain thinks I'm uptight, and my professors are basically blackmailing me. You treat me like a person. It makes for a nice change."  
          It was West's turn to shrug. "You're less self-involved than most. You don't pry, you don't whine, and you're working hard, even if it is in something as inconsequential as philosophy. It's a pity you didn't pursue a vocation in something useful. Now, if you'll please excuse me, I have my own work to accomplish. You're welcome to remain here until midnight, but then I'm afraid I have to ask you to leave."  
          "Midnight. Gotcha. And thanks."  
          "You're welcome."  
          It took her until after he'd left to realize that he'd paid her a complement- backhanded, admittedly, as befit his rather sarcastic nature, but a complement none the less. The warmth of that realization took her somewhat by surprise.  
          "Get real, " she muttered, "You have enough problems without developing a crush on a workaholic cynic. Even if he does have pretty eyes."  
  
          The flash of blond hair and shriek and door slam that greeted his arrival into the kitchen did not bother West in the slightest. He had gotten fully used to it during his first few months living with Cain; after the unfortunate demise of the cat, it was often his only glimpse of Megan Halsey. Not that he minded. What he liked about her could be written twice in longhand on a grain of rice and still leave enough space for the entire unexpurgated text of De Vermis Mysteriis. With footnotes.  
          "Herbert?"  
          West had often noted Cain's likeness to an enthusiastic Golden Retriever. When it came to women, though, Miss Halsey in particular, he often resembled a Golden Retriever whose Milk-Bones had been laced with crystal meth.  
          Case in point. "Herbert, is Patricia here yet?" Cain asked, bounding out of his room, attempting to simultaneously tie his tie and button his shirt.  
          "I haven't seen Miss O'Halloran, no."  
          "I guess it's only a quarter of seven. She's always on time, isn't she? She needs to relax. Anyway, it doesn't matter; I mean, it's all for the best that she turned out to be such a cold fish."  
          "Oh?" Although West poured every ounce of disdain and disinterest he had into the syllable, Cain continued speaking.  
          "Megan wants to talk over dinner. That's a pretty good sign. Are you going to be here for a while? Could you tell Patricia I won't be in tonight?"  
          "Can't you call her yourself? I'm not your personal messaging service."  
          "I did call, but her roommate said she was out. She lives with Joscelyn Bishop, can you believe it? I used to date her in high school. Great girl, Josie. She says she's pretty sure that Patricia's a lesbian. I mean, Josie says she doesn't want to try out for the squad, and she won't even talk to the guys from the football team when they come over-"  
          "Whatever, Daniel, " West held up a hand, wondering briefly how long it would take to invent a serum to make himself deaf at will, "I'll relay the message if I see her. Now, if you would excuse me, I have work to do."  
  
          As luck would have it- Hallie did believe in luck, mostly bad- she arrived at the front door just as Cain and Megan were about to leave.  
          Hallie and Megan sized each other up, Hallie wary, Megan cheerfully superior. After a few seconds Megan, apparently deciding that there was no reason to consider her a rival, gave her a beaming smile. Hallie responded with a perfunctory rictus grin that would not have looked out of place on a torture victim. Megan seemed not to notice, and beamed harder.  
          Cain, oblivious to the ritual, waved Hallie on into the house. "Patricia-"  
          "Hallie."  
          "-This is my fiancee, Megan Halsey."  
          Hallie held out her hand, and Megan shook it awkwardly.  
          "Nice to meet you, Patricia."  
          "Likewise. And it's _Hallie_."  
          "Ah...Hallie, " Megan said carefully, her nose wrinkling, "Why don't you use Patricia? It's such a pretty name."  
          "I don't really care for it."  
          "But Hallie sounds too much like a boy's name. You should really try Patty, at least."  
          Hallie opened her mouth and closed it again. "I'll take it under advisement, " she said finally.  
          "Good." Megan was all smiles again. She leaned back against Cain, who grabbed her around the waist and pulled her towards the doorway.  
          "Listen, Hallie, I'm going to have to bail on our study night. Megan...needs help with her sociology homework, so I'm heading over there. How about tomorrow?"  
          "Well, I've got another tutoring session, but I can probably come later on-"  
          "Good. Great. See you then."  
          As the door was closing, she caught a last snippet of conversation.  
          "-one of the charity scholarship students?" Megan was asking, "I have some dresses I don't wear anymore, do you think she'd..."  
          The door clicked shut, and Hallie resisted the urge to put her fist through the glass.  
  
          When West came in fifteen minutes later, he found Hallie sitting at the kitchen table, arms crossed, head down. Her pencil case was bent nearly in two, and there were several new dents in the table.  
          He cleared his throat, but she didn't move.  
          "Is something wrong?"  
          "Yes, " came the muffled reply, "There's a lot more to life than wearing nice clothes and being blond, gorgeous, and rich."  
          "I thought that went without saying. Do you want some coffee? I'm about to make a fresh pot."  
          "That'd be great, thanks." Hallie raised her head from the table. "Got any bourbon?"  
          West pointed to a cupboard. "Serve yourself."  
          "Thanks."  
          Hallie rummaged in the cupboard briefly, but recoiled and set the bottle she found back on the shelf with a thump.  
          "Black Jack? Jesus, that's practically paint thinner! Who bought that shit?"  
          West shrugged. "As I recall, it was here when I moved in."  
          "I'm bringing you guys a bottle of Wild Turkey next time. You can use the stuff in the cupboard for cleaning lab equipment."  
          West picked up the pencil case and turned it back and forth in the light. "So I take it you've met Miss Halsey?"  
          "Gee, how can you tell?"  
          "Deductive analysis. I, too, often feel like breaking things when she's around."  
          "I know I shouldn't let it get to me, but I just...I share a floor with twenty-four other girls just like her. They don't study, they don't work, they just flirt with their professors and coast on their parents' money and compete to snag the biggest, richest asshole they can find, and somehow, they think I'm the stupid one. I am working my ass off for this degree, and I don't have the time or the money to spend on that shit even if I was inclined, which I'm not, because it's all pointless, and, and, I hate it!"  
          West sighed and set a blue china mug on the table in front of her. "Miss O'Halloran-"  
          "Hallie. _Please._ "  
          "Hallie. You cannot let this sort of thing get to you. You cannot let yourself be dragged down by imbeciles."  
          "I know, I know, but there's so damned many of them."  
          "But you're correct, " he shrugged, "Numbers mean nothing if they're wrong."  
          "Yes, well, so I believe, but if you want to get technical, they're just as certain that they're right."  
          "And so are the people who think the Earth is flat. Self-delusion is nothing new. It certainly doesn't change established fact. You are correct; they are wasting their time and potential. You are not, or, at least, you are trying your best. You need to take comfort in that." He poured himself a cup of coffee.  
          Hallie stared at his mug. It was glaringly yellow, with a pharmaceutical company logo scrawled across the side in vivid purple.  
          "I thought it would be a skull."  
          "I beg your pardon?"  
          "Your mug. I thought it would be a skull. Possibly of one of your enemies. You know, like Attilla the Hun or something."  
          West snorted and headed towards the cellar.


	5. Chapter Five

  
          "Oh, not again."   
          West set down his bag with a thump and pinched the bridge of his nose. First it was a row with one of his professors over the latter's closed-mindedness, then yet another double shift at the hospital, and now this. The house was echoing with rhythmic thumping noises, coupled with an ongoing high-pitched wail. For a brief second he hoped that something had gone wrong downstairs in the lab, but a moment's further listening revealed that it was sadly not the case. It was only Megan and Dan, pulling another last-humans-on-earth marathon.   
          He considered going to the library, but night had already fallen. West cursed under his breath and went inside.   
          Luckily, there was no repeat of the Kitchen Incident. Instead, several books lay open on the table, and most of the free space was hidden under layers of papers. He nodded to Hallie where she stood at the counter, one hand over an ear, the other holding the coffeepot under the tap.   
          "I see Dan and his fiancee have reconciled."   
          She glared at him. "Gee, how can you tell? Want some coffee? Do you have a shotgun I could borrow?"   
          "That would be wonderful, thank you, and sadly I don't."   
          "Damn."   
          Hallie began dumping grounds into the coffeemaker, muttering under her breath.   
          "How long did the tutoring session last?"   
          "About three seconds, when Miss Yo-Yo Drawers showed up. Cain told me to wait around, because he has a big test tomorrow and he wants to go over the material. That was twenty minutes ago. I'm starting to think that Megan's the only that's going to be gone over this evening."   
          "Indeed."   
          The thumping increased from crazed to frenzied, and the squeal rose in pitch until it approached the upper thresholds of human hearing. Hallie flipped the switch on the coffeemaker and looked back over her shoulder incredulously.   
          "Jesus, it sounds like she's been taking lessons from the girls in my dorm. Are they having sex or killing a rabbit with a hammer?"   
          She couldn't be sure, but she thought West cracked a smile. "I'd prefer not to think about it. If the noise is too much for you, you can study in my room, provided you touch nothing. It is reasonably comfortable, and, more importantly, two rooms away."   
          "That's really sweet of you, but I don't want to put you out-"   
          "Think nothing of it. I have work to do in the basement; I'll be down there for some time. And from experience, I can tell you that it's not likely to get any quieter in here any time soon."   
          "Seriously? How do you cope? It's like living next to a sheet rock installation facility."   
          "I'll leave the door open for you when I go by."   
          The squealing began to move towards the subsonic level. Hallie rubbed her temples.   
          "Hey, tell, you what, I'll go with you."   
          West waited semi-patiently for the few seconds it took her to scoop up her books, and led the way down the hallway. He pointed at the last door on the right, nodded at her thanks, and disappeared through the cellar door, leaving Hallie to walk cautiously through the doorway.   
          The room was tidy and sparsely furnished, as she had expected, but despite the lack of personal possessions it still felt very strongly of him, which she had not expected. Apparently someone as driven as West could stamp his personality on a room simply by spending time in it.   
          She glanced briefly over the piles of medical textbooks, the diagrams of the brain and central nervous system pinned up on the walls, and the stacks of battered notebooks. His desk was clean and neat, and his bed was neatly made. Only the clothes hamper seemed out of place; the lid sat precariously on top of a large pile of torn and bloodstained clothing.   
          "Med students, " she snorted under her breath.   
          The extra room in between his and Cain's did muffle the sound somewhat; it was more akin to standing across the street from a bull in a china shop rather than actually being behind it in line. She set her books down on the desk and dragged a chair over from against the wall.   
          The furniture was mismatched, a standard feature of student living. The desk was old and high and apparently designed to be used with a stool. The chair was of normal height, which, as she sat down, put the surface of the desk at nearly shoulder-level. Hallie wondered if West, with his extra few inches of height, wasn't bothered by having to stretch. Or maybe he never studied at the desk and hadn't noticed.   
          Hallie flipped her book open and, pen at an awkward angle, began taking notes. The chair was comfortable enough, but the incongruity in altitude between it and the desk became more and more annoying as the minutes ticked by.   
          Finally, she glanced at her notes and found them practically unreadable. With a sigh, she stood up and turned towards the bed.   
          "I suppose it wouldn't hurt, " she said aloud, and lay down, still holding the book.   
          To her faint surprise, the mattress was quite comfortable- somehow she had pictured West as the hair shirt and bed of nails type- and the pillow smelled lightly of laundry detergent and a pleasant masculine scent.   
          "What did you expect, stupid, " she chided herself, "Nitre? Wolfsbane?"   
          She shifted slightly, looking for the most comfortable spot, and settled in to read.   
          The bed was soft, the light was low, and the muffled thumping began to seem very far away. During the second chapter of Xenophon's Oeconomicus Hallie found herself yawning.   
          'Two more chapters, ' she thought, 'Two more, and I'll go home. I can do this...'  
          It was the last thing she remembered as she drifted off to sleep.   
  
          Hallie woke to someone shaking her lightly. She blinked against the light and a face swam into view; dark hair, dark eyes, glasses, and intense expression.   
          "West?" she mumbled, "What's going on?"   
          "Go home." His voice was determined, but not angry.   
          "What?"   
          "It's late. You need to go home now. Come on, I've packed your things."   
          Hallie sat up hurriedly. "I'm sorry, " she yawned, "I must have drifted off. I didn't mean to-"   
          "It's fine." Again his words were clipped, but there was no malice in them. "It's all right, but you need to leave right now."   
          West took her elbow and helped her to a standing position, and without letting go steered her quickly through the darkened house and out the front door. He pressed her backpack into her hands, and pointed off in the direction of campus.   
          "See you around, " she managed, and he nodded and shut the door.   
          Shaking her head to clear it, Hallie shouldered her pack and started off into the night.   
          The cold air quickly brought her to something approaching full awareness, and she walked on the train tracks as usual until the rails began to shake, announcing the two-twenty freight from Kingsport. The roar rose and the night was split with sparks and clatter; she stood in the shadow of a nearby oak until it passed.   
          A scream of unholy animal rage echoed from the house she'd left, but it was lost in the noise of the train. Hallie picked up the penny she'd left on the tracks and continued on home. 


	6. Chapter Six

  
  
          Hallie had come to expect Cain turning up late for his tutoring sessions and leaving her alone. And she had come to expect West turning up the moment the coffee began to percolate. But she was not used to him turning up with a limp that she heard dragging the whole way down the hall and his arms and neck scratched and torn.   
          "Holy shit, West, what happened to you? You look like you lost a fight with a lawn mower!"   
          "It's nothing, " he shrugged, "Fell down the stairs."   
          "Onto what, a porcupine?"   
          "A box of croquet equipment, actually."   
          "Jeez, be more careful next time."   
          He looked off into the distance. "Oh, I'm taking some precautions."   
          "I certainly hope so." On impulse, she reached out and brushed a scratch on his cheek. "Are you sure you're okay?"   
          "I'd be better if you didn't poke at my wounds, " he replied mildly.   
          "Sorry."   
          "No matter. Daniel's left again with Miss Halsey. Will you be staying to study?"   
          "Not tonight. I've got a few library books to return, or else they'll come up past due and I'll apparently be...What was that again?" She flipped the book open to the back cover and strained to read the fine print at the bottom of the card envelope. "I will be fed to a shantak. Whatever that means. It doesn't sound good, anyway."   
          "Indeed."   
          Again, surprising herself, she reached out to touch his cheek. "I'd better get going if I want to make there before they close. Be careful, all right?"   
          The look he gave her was unreadable, but his tone was still mild. "I'll do my best."   
  
          Cain had ditched again. This time he'd left a hastily scribbled note that had taken her fifteen minutes to puzzle out- apparently he was getting a jump start on reducing his handwriting to the normal physician's scrawl- informing her that he was out again with Megan for dinner and would proceed directly from there to his shift at the hospital.   
          Hallie shrugged and fished a folder out of her backpack, stowing it under the note. This had been happening more and more often of late, and she'd taken to leaving him a typed summary of the chapters he was working on, with her own notes and sample questions, and on the rare occasions where he did show up they went over any questions he had. Apparently her strategy was working; Dr. Bierce had been as close to cheerful as she'd ever seen him the last time they'd had a meeting. He was even talking about recommending her for another, supplemental scholarship, which would mean that she could quit half her tutoring jobs next semester and possibly- dare she think it?- get a day off.   
          The noise of the cellar door hitting the wall jolted her out of her reverie, and she reached for the baseball bat Cain had taken to keeping on the counter. The words echoing through the hall were definitely human, though, and most of them would have made a sailor blush.   
          She set the bat back down as West came snarling through the doorway, snatching up an empty glass from the drainboard.   
          "Is something wrong?"   
          His glare felt like a physical blow. "Yes, actually, " he snapped, enunciating each word clearly as though to a child, "I am stymied in my current line of research. I am on the verge of a solution- it is within my reach, but I am unable to see it clearly. I am distracted and angry, and I find nothing more intolerable than those moments when my reason will not obey my will."   
          Hallie looked him over slowly. "Mm."   
          "What do you mean, 'Mm'? I am on the verge of a breakthrough that will change life as we know it, if I could concentrate enough to find the solution, and all you can say is 'Mm' ?"   
          The glass shattered in the sink, and he turned away violently.   
          "I happen, " Hallie said calmly, and West paused in the doorway, "To have heard of a good cure for writer's block. Scientist's block. Whatever."   
          West turned to look at her patronizingly. "And that would be...?"   
          Hallie shrugged and looked away. "Sex. Or, more specifically, orgasm."   
          West blinked.   
          "I don't have time for this, " he said finally, "I have serious research to accomplish."   
          "No, seriously! I'm not being flippant. From what I've read, it releases endorphins in the brain, eases tensions, is good for headache-"   
          "Yes, yes, I've read the material. What do you suggest? That I masturbate until my mind is clear? Or are you volunteering to join me in my room so that we can rut like animals? The fate of humanity, saved via a quick fuck."   
          "West, you smooth talker you, " Hallie snorted, "When you put it so romantically, how can I say no?"   
          West picked up a plate that had been left in the dish drainer. "Right, I've had enough of this. You can see yourself out."   
          Hallie took a deep breath. "I'm...I'm not kidding."   
          He paused in mid-throw. "I beg your pardon?"   
          "Look, you're pretty obviously wound up, and you said yourself you can't get any work done. Doesn't it make more sense to try something that might help you, rather than waiting around and hope that it goes away on its own?"   
          "And I am to believe that you are actually volunteering to go to bed with me in order to facilitate my research."   
          "I...something like that, yeah. Mostly because I'd like to on its own merits, but the research thing is a useful side effect."   
          West sighed, running a hand through his hair. The anger drained out of his face, leaving him looking very tired. "All right."   
          Hallie blinked. "All right?"   
          "Did I stutter?" he snapped, "Unless you're backing out now."   
          "No, I- I'm just a little surprised, that's all. I thought it would take more to convince you."   
          "I am staring defeat in the face simply because I cannot concentrate. It would not take much at the moment to convince me to try self-trepanation. Your suggestion is much more practical, and, it goes without saying, slighty preferable."   
          "Wow, you're willing to admit that sex is better than a hole in your head? Try to curb your enthusiasm."   
          West rolled his eyes and led her down the hallway. 


	7. Chapter Seven

  
  
          His room was not quite so neat as the last time Hallie had seen it; books were scattered over every surface, and several empty mugs fought for purchase on the edge of the already overcrowded desk.   
          West moved a handful of books from the bed and set them atop a pile that covered a nearby table. He picked up a clipboard that had been wedged under the books and glanced around the room, apparently looking for enough free space to set it down.   
          "We need to get the preliminaries out of the way. Date of last sexual encounter?"   
          "Ummm, the twelfth of never, " Hallie said in a rush, voice shaking a little, "It was probably a Tuesday."   
          West looked up at her over the clipboard. For the first time, she saw him actually taken aback.   
          "...You've never done this?"   
          Hallie shrugged. "Sorry, just because I live in Dunsany doesn't mean that I'm a slut. As evidence, you'll notice I haven't fucked your roommate, despite his efforts to the contrary, and apparently my roommate thinks I'm a lesbian because I refused to go behind the bleachers with her drunken cousin."   
          "Yes, well, you have shown some sense in certain areas."   
          "Why, Mr. West, you'll turn my head with such pretty compliments."   
          He sighed and put the clipboard on top of the already teetering pile of books. "Birth control?"  
          "The pill, since I was thirteen. Things weren't...arriving on a regular basis, and- "   
          "I understand. It's a common prescription for complications with the menstrual cycle. You're taking it at the same time each day?"   
          "Yep. Nine-thirty am on the dot, for twelve years. I'm a little anal-retentive about it."   
          "After that amount of time, we can assume that it will be functioning nominally. Do you want an additional barrier device?"   
          "Are you safe?"   
          She knew the answer before she spoke- the idea that West would be anything other than careful was patently ridiculous- and winced, waiting for him to snap at her, but he only shrugged and answered her in a mild tone.   
          "My last routine physical was six months ago, before I entered the country, and I received a clean bill of health. I have the paperwork in my dresser if you would like to see it. I have done nothing in the interim that would jeopardize that rating, although you'll have to take my word on that."   
          "I do."   
          "All right, then. We can proceed." West loosened his tie and began to unbutton his shirt.   
          "So, no foreplay then?"   
          He rolled his eyes. "I don't have all day to fritter away. Every moment we waste is one more moment that humanity remains enslaved under the unjust and capricious rule of Death."   
          "Humanity will survive twenty extra minutes without you."   
          West considered a moment. "Ten."   
          "Fifteen."   
          "Twelve."   
          "Twelve and a half."   
          "Done."   
          He removed the rest of his clothing with a few quick gestures and stood unselfconsciously in the center of the room. Hallie whistled.   
          "Jeez, West, are there a lot of basketball players in your family?"   
          He gave her the barest hint of a smile. "I assure you that my dimensions are only slightly above average for a Caucasian male."   
          "If you say so. From here it looks like you've been experimenting with elephant DNA." Hallie began to undo the top button of her shirt and hesitated.   
          "Are you having second thoughts? You're wasting your twelve and a half minutes..."   
          "I...No on the second thoughts, and sorry about the time wasting. Honestly, I'm just a little scared."   
          He nodded. "That's to be expected. You may take your time, provided you don't take all night."   
          "Thanks." She finished unbuttoning her shirt, shrugged it off, and started on the rest of her clothes. "I was wondering if you'd just, you know, go for it."   
          "If you were more experienced it would likely have been a different story. If both parties are well acquainted with what pleases them, not to mention what to expect, a satisfactory conclusion can be reached in less time. However, given your inexperience, I am prepared to go a little more slowly."   
          It was odd, she thought, that being naked didn't increase her nervousness any. Mind you, she thought, it didn't decrease it any, either. "Well...How should we begin?"   
          "I'd suggest that you start small, until you're comfortable."   
          "Small, huh? I definitely won't be starting down there..."   
          West ignored this and remained still as Hallie leaned in closer. She took a deep breath and kissed him just below his ear. Underneath the harsh odors of industrial cleaner and hospital grade soap was the same pleasant, masculine scent she remembered.   
          "Nice, " she murmured, and began to nibble cautiously at his earlobe. His left hand slid around her shoulders.   
          "I believe, " West said calmly, "That you've already used four minutes."   
          "Ah, so I shouldn't waste any more time, " she said, and kissed him.   
          He did not pull away, but neither did he lean towards her. He simply stayed still and responded with precisely the same amount of pressure and movement that she used. He seemed technically proficient enough, and she felt she was doing a fair job, but there was still something missing.   
          Hallie drew back slightly. "Okay, so maybe the kissing's out."   
          "I understand that it requires an emotional attachment to reach its full potential."   
          "Mmm, pity. I think you'd be really good at it."   
          West ran his hands lightly across her ribcage, and she took a quick breath. "I'm sure we can find something else to do to keep ourselves occupied."   
          His fingers stroked upwards, caressing the undersides of her breasts. The breath caught in her throat, and she made a small mewling noise as he rolled his thumb expertly over her left nipple. Her hand reached out convulsively and grabbed him by the arm.   
          "Do you want me to stop?"   
          "No, " Hallie said, eyes closed, "No, that wasn't a stop signal. That was an 'either I hang on to you or I fall over' signal."   
          "Ah. In that case, I'll just keep going."   
          His left hand slid down slowly over the curve of her hip, while the right continued to play with her nipples, alternating between each as his other hand did fascinating things below her bellybutton. Hallie leaned her head back with a contented sigh.   
          "I believe your time is up."   
          Again, his face was expressionless, but she had known him long enough to guess when he was making a joke.   
          "I suppose we'd better cut to the chase, then. Unless you're having second thoughts..."   
          West pushed her gently onto her back with a palm flat on her chest, and settled himself on his elbows above her. He held himself there, motionless, letting her fidget and shift until she was comfortable.   
          "You have pretty eyes, " Hallie said finally.   
          "I assume that if my appearance displeased you it would be unlikely you would have proposed this little...study break."   
          "Wow, West, I'm amazed you don't have to fight off women with a stick."   
          He looked skyward for a moment. "Are you ready or not?"   
          She considered, then nodded, and without preamble he shifted his hips forward slowly and entered her. A long breath hissed out between his teeth, but his expression remained focused.   
          Hallie whimpered softly. West paused and looked at her with, she was surprised to find, something approaching concern.   
          "Is it painful?"   
          "No, it's fine-"   
          "Don't lie. You're in pain?"   
          "...Yeah."   
          "It'll pass. Take a deep breath and relax. Tell me when you're ready to continue."   
          She looked up at him curiously. He held his weight easily on his elbows, unmoving, clearly content to maintain his position for as long as necessary.   
          "It's nothing to worry about, " he said, misreading her look, "It's perfectly normal. Though your hymen was not intact, likely due to childhood participation in athletics or gymnastics, it is still common for a inexperienced woman to experience discomfort during the initial stages of penetration. Your level of lubrication is sufficient, so any pain is likely due to tenseness in the lower vaginal muscles. They will relax shortly and it should become more pleasurable."   
          Hallie bit back a sarcastic comment; for all the flaws in his delivery, West seemed to be genuinely trying to comfort her.   
          Instead she murmured a quiet, "Thanks." The pain _was_ fading, slowly, being replaced with an interesting sensation she had no name for.   
          She began to run her fingertips lightly up and down West's sides and back, watching him carefully for a reaction. His expression remained unchanging, but she noted the places that made the muscles in his throat jump.   
          Hallie rubbed softly at one particular spot, just at the small of his back, and he drew a quick breath. She grinned gleefully and did it again, and a third time.   
          He saw her grin and looked down at her quizzically. "What?"   
          "When I do this- " she stroked her fingers across his back, and he made a small sound, "You do that. I'm just amazed, that's all."   
          "If I were completely immune to pleasure there would be no point to my being here at this moment. I am not made of stone."   
          Hallie grinned again and shifted her hips. "Certainly could have fooled me."   
          "I assume if you're back to making smart remarks the pain has passed. How do you feel?"   
          "Honestly..? Nice."   
          "Good."   
          He thrust in and out once experimentally, and Hallie clutched at him and whimpered in something wholly opposite to pain.   
          "Now, " he began, still in that same, clipped tone, "While most men opt for thrashing about, wasting energy in an inefficient manner and doing little for their partners, I have, through some reading, discovered a useful movement that benefits both parties."   
          He drove into her deeply, until he was tight against her and she cried out.   
          "Now, instead of a back and forth motion, I move thusly-" he ground his hips upward, dragging another moan from her throat, "And I am able to stimulate your clitoral region via heavy contact of my pubic bone."   
          "I love it when you talk dirty, West, " Hallie managed, and threw her head back and gasped as he repeated the movement. He paused for a moment, then grinned.   
          "Also, it seems an effective means of shutting you up."   
          "There is no effective way to-" she began, but he ground against her again and the sentence ended abruptly.   
          "You were saying?"   
          "I was saying, 'Please keep doing that, Mr. West, if it isn't too much trouble.' "   
          "Certainly."   
          He continued, picking up the pace slightly, until Hallie was mewling in time with his strokes. He felt her tighten all around him, but maintained a steady rhythm, letting the tension build. Hallie was bucking underneath him, grinding her pelvis upwards against him and pulling at his hips. He calculated that it would be only a matter of minutes until she reached a peak, given her state of arousal, and he pressed against her harder, deciding to speed up the process.   
          It didn't take long. "I think I'm going to- to-"   
          "I suggest you stop talking about it and do it, " he replied shortly.   
          Hallie tried to speak again- something along the lines of "You bastard, "- but the orgasm hit her so hard it choked the words off in her throat, leaving her gasping and clutching at his shoulders. He continued on without pause until she came again, calling out his name, eyes wide with surprise. Only then did he pause, panting slightly, both to give her a chance to recover and to regain some of his self-discipline. His control over his emotions was flawless, which he felt befit a scientist of his caliber, but he admitted to himself that even scientists were often hard-pressed to maintain control over other, more primitive functions, especially when in the midst of giving someone a screaming orgasm.   
          It was some moments before Hallie could speak.   
          "Fucking hell, West, " she managed finally, and he gave her a triumphant grin.   
          "Voila. Results need not come at the expense of efficiency."   
          "So, um, can you come by doing that?"   
          He gave her a complacent smile. "You could take my word for it, but I imagine you'd like a practical demonstration."   
          "Please."   
          "Forgive me, but it will likely not take too long."   
          "It's all right. I think it's probably your turn by now. I mean, like you keep saying, we haven't got all night. You've got to get back to beating up on Death."   
          West chuckled deep in his throat and began again.   
          There were times, he thought, as Hallie bit his shoulder lightly and moaned, that he almost understood why people gave up the academic life. Not that he would ever consider such a thing; there was far too much yet for him to accomplish, far too many discoveries waiting. But there were times like this one when he felt he almost understood the normal student's drive to do nothing more than eat, sleep, and pound themselves breathless into a willing woman. Almost. Almost.   
          Almost there...  
          He heard her call out his name, high and lost, as she raked one hand down his back to the base of his spine. West shut his eyes and surrendered himself to sensation.   
  
          When he opened his eyes again, Hallie was gently stroking his shoulders. He allowed himself that little luxury for a few moments, resting his weight on her, then he withdrew carefully and pushed himself up onto his knees.   
          "How do you feel?"   
          Hallie considered. "Is 'amazing' a viable choice? How about you?"   
          "I feel more positive that I will be able to surmount the current obstacles in my research."   
          "So maybe there is something to this endorphin theory."   
          West chuckled. "Yes, I think we've got some empirical evidence to support the established studies."   
          He paused a moment, suddenly lost in thought. "Endorphins, endorphins..."   
          West leapt off the bed, heedless of Hallie's startled squeak, and struggled into his pants, eyes alight with eagerness. "Of course! Of course, it's been staring me in the face!"   
          He threw on his shirt, not bothering with the buttons, and dashed into the hallway. From beyond, Hallie could hear the sound of the front door opening.   
          West turned towards the kitchen. "Dan!"   
          "What?"   
          "Dan, get over here!"   
          Hallie hurriedly pulled the blanket up to her chin. Cain careened around the corner, still dressed in his work clothes, and stopped dead in his tracks. He took in the scene; West, barely dressed, wild-eyed and tousle-haired. Hallie, huddled in West's bed, apparently torn between hiding under the covers or bursting into hysterical laughter.   
          "West, whoa, what the- "   
          "No time, Dan- join me in the lab as soon as you get changed! I think I've figured out the problem!" He bolted back into the room and grabbed a pile of notebooks off the desk, tucking them under his arm.   
          'Madness or genius? ' Hallie thought, and then wondered if there was any appreciable difference. Maybe geniuses didn't stuff as many bloodstained clothes in their laundry hampers, but still...  
          Cain was still standing in the doorway, staring. He looked from Hallie to West and back again, twice, and so quickly Hallie wondered briefly if his head would fall off. "West, " he began again, but West pointed towards the cellar door.   
          "No time, Dan! Get to the lab! I've got the solution!"   
          Cain nodded dumbly and left. West opened the small refrigerator and pulled a black leather bag from it.   
          Hallie sat up, still holding the blanket. "West-"   
          He turned swiftly, eyes still alight with that same, fey excitement. "Yes?"   
          "Good luck."   
          For a moment his face softened and he gave her a quick half-smile.   
          "Thanks." He bolted out the door.   
          Hallie sank back against the pillows, listening to the footsteps as they receded towards the cellar. After a moment, she slipped out of bed and began to dress. 


	8. Chapter Eight, Apparently

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I had a couple of polite requests for a sequel, and after a couple of years I came up with this. I'm not sure "We're in our forties now and grumpier and one of us just broke out of prison" was what they were looking for, but here it is.

_Eighteen years later..._   
  
      April in Massachusetts did not lend itself to clear skies and sunny days. It had been pouring all day; the clouds hung swollen and heavy, and the rain fell like sheets of lead. Though the showers did lead to the proverbial May flowers, the flowers themselves usually arrived late and were too soggy to cheer anyone up more than a trifle. The ditches were full of snowmelt and the rivers were swelling, and the students, like generations before them, hunkered down in their rooms, drowning their sorrows in whatever vice was closest to hand while dreaming of summer vacation.   
      Nowhere, it seemed, did the rain fall more heavily than a lumbering stone building on the outskirts of Miskatonic University. It beat at the oblong glass panes in high windows, it thudded against the slates and rattled the loose wooden sashes. The building's stone face was shiny with a new coat of lacquer and the mortar had been recently replaced, but the stones themselves were dark with age and retained their chisel marks from Dunham Quarry two centuries prior. Each door set into the stone was dark and short, nearly squat, built for the shorter population of an earlier age. Electric lights and wheelchair access ramps did not make the building look any less ancient, or less foreboding.   
      The figure that approached did not seem to notice other than to nod slightly as he sighted the line of brass apartment numbers. He pulled his thin coat higher in a vain attempt to keep water from dripping down his neck and rapped his knuckles firmly against the door to number seven.   
      The response was sharp, immediate. "Who the hell is it? And why didn't you schedule?"  
      He smiled faintly. "I'm not here for a tutoring session, Hallie."  
      His voice was quiet, but the tone carried sharply even against the rain. There was a brief pause, and then he heard the frantic rattle of a chain lock against the heavy wooden door a moment before it swung inwards. The woman on the other side stared at him incredulously.   
      _"West?"_   
      "Hello. I'm sorry to trouble you inside office hours, but could I come inside?"  
      "I- Of course." She stepped backwards from the doorway and allowed him to stumble through. "They said on the news you were...Jesus, you look about half-drowned."  
      "The weather has not been cooperative."  
      "Yeah, and I'm about a mile and a half from the bus station. You must be freezing. How the hell did you find me, anyway?"  
      West grinned faintly and held up a soaked and dripping campus phonebook. "It wasn't too hard, Dr. O'Halloran."  
      "Heh. Hadn't thought of that. Come on and get in here where it's warm."  
      She closed and locked the door behind him, then gestured him out of the entryway and into a small office dominated by a large framed photgraph of a Mayan pyramid. This battled to make the space seemed larger, but the two office chairs and desk overflowing with papers appeared to be winning.   
      "So, " Hallie said, "You're not dead."  
      "So it would seem. Are you working late?"  
      "Nah, I knocked off hours ago. We're past midterms, so I'm in downtime at the moment. Only had a few papers to grade, and I'll do them tomorrow afternoon."  
      "I suppose then I'm lucky I caught you before you headed for home."  
      "I _am_ home." Hallie snorted and plucked at her battered Nosferatu t-shirt, "Seriously, West, do you think I dress like this for work?"  
      "Yes, well, the other option is that you live in your office."  
      "It's not as bad as it sounds, " she said defensively, and led him through another door and into a high-ceilinged living room. A few worn pieces of overstuffed furniture were arranged on the varnished wooden floor. Through an open arch to the right he could see a tiny kitchenette. "It's an apartment too, see? They built them for the first female students back in the Edwardian age, and sometime in the last decade or so the administration decided to make this into the faculty office building. They're supplied to each professor as a part of our contract; it's just that most of the staff apparently don't want to live on campus. I moved in here after my divorce. It's nice enough, especially now that they've done some restoration work."  
      "It's quite cramped."  
      "I prefer 'cosy.' "  
      "Yes, " he replied, "I imagine you do. How long have you been with the department?"  
      "Pretty much since I got my doctorate. They hired me on to replace Dr. Bierce when he...Well, we tell people he retired. It's not a bad job, and the pay's enough to get by with. They'll forgive a lot of my loans, too, as long as I stay on."  
      "Surely you had other offers?"  
      Hallie snorted and ducked into the kitchen, reappearing a moment later with a steaming china mug. "You're being kind. As you're probably well aware, the only way to make money in my field is to teach, and I'm far from the only philosopher out there with a PhD and bills to pay- the competition for what few decent spots are available is remarkably cutthroat for a field dominated by skinny guys in beards and sweaters. There were a few offers from smaller schools, but the pay scale wasn't quite as attractive, and none of them have the library like we have here. That alone was enough to convince me to stay on. I've got a special access card, so I can get into the restricted rooms, and there's no more rushing to bring books back before nightfall."  
      "No threat of shantaks, then?" Though his voice had changed a little with age, that half-interested, half-mocking edge was deeply familiar.  
  
      _He was calculated and thorough, showed her what he liked, systemetically catalogued what she enjoyed, and used both to full advantage to pack a maximum amount of pleasure into the minimum of time. No matter how brief the encounter, she was left panting and exhausted._   
  
      Hallie shook her head slightly, trying to clear it. "Not anymore. So...I saw the news. They didn't let you out for good behavior, did they?"  
      "No. There was a series of accidents, and I left in the confusion."  
      "Can't say that I blame you." She held out the cup and he took it, wrapping his hands gratefully around its warmth. "They think you're dead, by the way, at least so far. So did I, for that matter."  
      He tossed back half the coffee in one swallow and managed something akin to a smile. "I'm sorry to have startled you."  
      "It's fine. Give me half an hour and I'll have some dinner for you. You want a shower while you wait? I think there's still some of Simon's stuff around somewhere, and you're about the same size."  
      "That would be very helpful, thank you."  
      Hallie disappeared into the hallway and reappeared a few moments later with an armful of folded clothes and a threadbare towel, which she handed to West.  
      "Bathroom's down this way on the right. Throw your stuff in the hamper and I'll get it later. I've got a friend in the art department that can sneak it into a kiln."  
      "Thank you."   
      He finished the coffee in another tremendous gulp, set the cup down gently on a nearby end table and headed into the bathroom. The door squeaked shut behind him, and after a moment she heard the stacatto rattle of the old pipes that preceeded the roar of the shower kicking in to high.   
      Hallie dug around in the bureau next to the phone, flipping absently through take-out menus, listening to the drum and hiss of the water in the next room.  
  
      _Wet hair plastered to his head and flopping down over his eyes. Wet lips on her neck, wet skin against hers, two fingers in her mouth to quiet her moans._   
  
      'Get a hold of yourself, O'Halloran!' she thought fiercely, "You're not a kid anymore!"  
      She punched the speed dial button for the Mekong Green Jade Palace and asked for a double order of her usual, and the older woman on the other end of the line tutted.   
      "Working through the weekend again, Doctor?"  
      "When am I not, Jie-Lijuan?"   
      "You're going to work yourself into an early grave."  
      "Not when your food's there to keep me going. Besides, the University would put me on life-support until I finished out my contract."  
      She tutted again, muttered something disapproving in Cantonese, and hung up the phone. Hallie chuckled.  
      "Well, that's one problem solved, anyway."


	9. Chapter Nine, One More To Go

      The other problem, of course, wasn't going to be resolved quite so easily. True, a single phone call would have summoned the authorities and Hallie could have gotten a write-up in the paper as a good citizen, but that thought was examined and discarded. Whatever he had done- and she remained a bit hazy on the exact details, as did anyone else who watched the news- she still considered him a friend, and her branch of the O'Hallorans, themselves somewhat morally ambivalent, did not rat out on their friends. Also, she had developed a distaste for law over the years, mainly through studying the underlying philosophy behind it. What good was keeping an obviously brilliant mind locked up? Incidents did follow him, but surely, with a decent grant and secure facilities, wasn't there still useful work he could accomplish for humanity?   
      'Which part of you is furnishing the reasoning, hmm?'  
      True, that was a partial consideration. Simon had been gone for close to two years now, and she hadn't taken another lover. Not, she reminded herself, that she missed him unduly, or that he had been so good in bed that no one would compare, but mainly because here, in this place, she was closeted away from the world, and she had always found it far too easy to get lost in her work. She had done her job, one day after the next, and now here she was with her first lover asking for shelter. After such a long stretch of work-enforced celibacy, the memories of what she'd had and had been missing were rushing back with alarming force.   
      The doorbell rang and Hallie snorted, well-used to life interrupting her reveries. The noise of the shower had stopped, but luckily West had not yet made his reappearance, and Hallie was able to collect her dinner in relative peace. She gave the stone-faced delivery boy the money with a generous tip overlaid, and a stern warning that at least half should make it to his grandmother, before hustling him back out into the downpour.   
      Hallie threw the bolt and dropped the chain lock into its divot, then sighed with equal parts relief and irritation and carried the bag through into the living room.   
      'Someday, I'll get a shot at the quiet life. Maybe even before I'm dead.'  
      "Did I hear voices?" West appeared behind her dressed in baggy jeans and flannel and drying his hair with a towel. The picture was so incongruous that she fought back a snicker.   
      "Just dinner arriving. Come on, get it while it's hot."  
      She spread the food out on the dining table and fussed about in the kitchen for a moment, gathering together a few dishes, napkins, and two bottles of Magic Hat. West glared at the chopsticks she proffered him, and she replaced them with a fork, chuckling.   
      "I suppose cultural exchange isn't high on your list of knowledge priorities."  
      "Eating takes enough of my time without purposefully making it more complicated."  
      "Of course. You have to make sure your senses get the least exercise possible if they're not being bent to scientific work. It's the only way they'll learn."  
      "You never complained about my efficiency."  
      "Shut up and eat your kun pao."  
      Despite her predictions, West took his time over the food. She'd seen him eat a handful of times back in their college days, and knew his normal mode of operations was to inhale whatever was cheapest and easiest as quickly as possible, preferably while deeply engrossed in one of his endless volumes of notes. Currently he was eating at a speed approaching that of a normal human being, as well as seemingly savoring the beer, and she wondered if prison had hit him harder than he let on.  
      She waved him away as he started to pick up the dishes.   
      "Eh, don't worry about it. You're company. And it's not as though I got out the good china."  
      West shrugged and went to peruse the bookshelves while Hallie put the remaining food away and stacked the dishes in the sink. He ran his fingertip lightly along the bookshelf and selected one of the volumes, smiling crookedly.  
      "You've been published, I see, " he said, flipping through the pages.  
      "Yeah, a couple of times. It's no big deal, really, just some side work on mythology and the unconscious. I don't seem to be cut out for the textbook stuff. The royalty checks are sometimes worth a good meal out, which is nice, because I get tired of the University food. Even takeout palls after a while."  
      "You still eat in the cafeteria?"  
      "There's no stove in the kitchen. Fire regulations, apparently."  
      West sighed and put the book back. "This is what you worked for? Living like a student?"  
      "West. Seriously. I'm not sure why you're expecting me to be a jet-setter, but I'm going to have to break it to you- I'm a philosophy professor with five-figure school debt, who, in case you haven't noticed, isn't going to win America's Top Model anytime soon and be swept off by a Grand Duke to his castle in the highlands, at least until they bring out the ageing scholar edition. I have an apartment, tenure, and a toaster oven. This is as good as it's going to get right now."  
      "And a library card, " he sneered, "Don't forget the library card."  
      "Fuck you, West. You'd be sleeping in a bus shelter right now if I wasn't here."   
      "True. And still...With the drive I remembered, I expected that you would go further."  
      "Well, I thought you'd have a Nobel Prize by now, and instead you went to prison. Life gives out those little surprises sometimes. Now please stop talking about my fucking career, all right? It's depressing enough as it is without you harping on it."  
      "All right, " he shrugged, "You were married?"  
      Hallie counted to ten silently, then sighed. "Why, are you surprised?"  
      "Not really. Most people try it sooner or later."  
      "I tried it sooner rather than later, which may have been the problem. I found his confidence attractive, he found my intelligence attractive, but other than that we were appallingly unsuited for each other. It's perfectly clear to me now, but then...Well, it only took six years for us to figure it out. And it only took two years after that for the courts to decide who got what."  
      "Hmm, yes, well, I think it's fairly obvious who got what. A bit of a debacle, I assume?"  
      Hallie rolled her eyes. "You have no idea."  
      "Thankfully, no, I don't."  
      "The best part was when he threatened to get fired from his job and sue me for alimony unless I gave him sole custody of our dog."  
      "Interesting, " West nodded, with a tone that clearly meant it was anything but.  
      "No, " Hallie sighed, "No, you're right, it isn't, really. It's sordid and hateful and awful, and I'm sorry to bring it up. The last thing you want to hear after busting out of the joint is a litany of my personal problems."  
      West blinked at her and chuckled. " 'Busting out of the joint, ' " he said, and she grinned, "I think you watch far too many late night movies, Doctor O'Halloran."  
      "Well, it's not like I have a hell of a lot else to do, as you've been at such pains to point out to me. Now could we kindly stop talking about my life, or lack thereof?"  
      "You'll hardly want to hear about _my_ last several years."  
      "Yeah, but that doesn't mean we have no other recourse as far as communication goes. We used to talk about other stuff, didn't we?"  
      "I'm not sure the noises you made count as conversation."  
      Hallie smacked him on the shoulder, and rolled her eyes when it failed to elicit the slightest response. "Jesus, West, not even prison made you jumpy. I should have known."   
      She saw a muscle in his neck tighten, the word making him twitch where the cuff could not. She tugged at his collar gently.  
      "Hey. You're out now, remember? I know the apartment's pretty small, but you're dressed like a lumberjack and not a carrot, and that should be a definite clue."  
      He ignored this and looked down to where she'd touched his shirt. "Are these his clothes?"  
      "Who, Max? No, those are Simon's. Max is my ex, Simon was somewhat later. Some of his stuff is still here because he tends to drop in between assignments."  
      He looked up sharply. "Military or special services?"  
      "Neither. He's a photographer. Honestly, West, what the hell do you care? I'm not a nun."  
      "I am naturally loathe to lose my newly acquired freedom, and thus am attempting to acertain whether any of your lovers, former or otherwise, are likely to turn up here unexpectedly."  
      "Well, they're not. Simon's on a three-year tour of eastern Asia, Max hates my guts, and the others have drifted off into the mists of memory. Except you. You're sitting in my living room, causing a felony."  
      "If it's too much trouble- " he began acidly, and she held up her hand.  
      "You know it isn't. I wouldn't have let you in, otherwise. But what, precisely, are we going to do about your situation?"  
      "Nothing until morning, I assume. " He yawned and rubbed the back of his hand across his eyes.  
      "Tired?" she asked, and chuckled when he glared at her, "Of course, it was a stupid question. I'll take the couch, you can have my room."  
      "It's not necessary for you to give up your bed. I've slept in far worse places."  
      "Which is precisely my point. You've been in jail for how long now? The least I can do is let you have the comfier option."  
      West sighed. "If you insist on being difficult, I will be forced to point out that the bed will fit both of us comfortably. And it's not as though it would be the first time."  
      "You never let me stay over."  
      "That's not entirely true."  
      "Isn't it?" Thinking, she shut the lights off and followed him to the bedroom.


	10. Chapter Ten - Done At Last

    _He'd asked for her for three nights running, and every session was a little more intense than the last. She was already tired; any time not involving her own classes, her tutoring jobs, and her thesis, was now given over to West whenever he asked, and the half-mile hike back and forth from the campus to the little house past the viaduct. Hallie couldn't remember the last time she'd gotten more than three hours of sleep in any given night. She knew she was being used, and couldn't find it in her heart to care. Everyone else was using her, why not West? At least he gave her something in return.  
      Tonight had been much like the last two, although this time she was pretty sure she was going to end up with at least one hickey and she'd made a mental note to trim her nails short to give his back a break. It was a rare night where the bed was free of textbooks and other debris, so they had ended up there by default, although thanks to his varied housekeeping she was now on intimate terms with pretty much every other sturdy piece of furniture in the room.   
      'At least that desk is good for something, ' she thought smugly, as they lay and caught their breath.  
      It was these moments she enjoyed the most, possibly because they were so very few; laying quiet and content with her head in the crook of his shoulder and one hand resting on his chest, feeling his heartbeat slow. He rarely stayed still for long, and so she had to make the most of every moment, pretending while it lasted that this was any other relationship. Then he'd move her hand and sit up, and the small dream would melt away, and she was only herself again, alone in his bed as he disappeared off to his research.   
      Tonight, though, was just one too many on too much activity and not enough sleep, and somewhere in those brief minutes of rest she drifted across the line from dozing to dreaming. She didn't wake when he left, but she did surface briefly when he returned, as the first faint streaks of lights slipped grayly around the window shades, and to her vague wonder he simply lay down next to her and fell swiftly asleep. After a moment she did, too.  
      When the alarm went off a few hours later she found herself pressed against his back, holding him tight. He said nothing; simply disengaged himself gently, got dressed, and went to class. She followed his example, head and heart both full of confusion.  
      She liked to think she knew him better than anyone, but she knew the truth was that he simply wasn't hard to read. Beyond his work there wasn't much to him. But he was brilliant, sarcastic, did not suffer fools, gladly or otherwise, and did not find her intellect unattractive. She genuinely liked his company; after all the men she had known who shied away as soon they found out she wasn't just another brainless co-ed, it made for a pleasant alternative. However, she knew there was no chance for reciprocal feelings; he had none to give. He was obsessed, and that obsession was the core of him, and that was never going to change. She was fairly certain he cared about her, but she knew it stemmed only from what she represented to him- a convenient and congenial aid to the study of his life's work. Although not completely cold- he obviously cared about the well-being of the human race as a whole, or why devote his life to the study of immortality?- there was no room in his life for anything else. Or anyone.   
      Hallie was no fool. She knew that sooner or later he would move on, or find the breakthrough he was after and have no further use for her, and that would be the end of it. So she did her best to enjoy what she had of him, and not to expect anything beyond the moment.   
      Some nights, though, were very long indeed. _  
  
      She jumped as he touched her shoulder. "Ah. I assume your reaction means that you do remember."   
      "I remember three days later, when I found out you and Cain had left for Bolivia. You son of a bitch, " she said, but there was no heat in her voice, "You son of a bitch, you left without even saying good-bye. You could at least have told me good-bye!"  
      "Time was of the essence."  
      "Time always is. I loved you, you know."  
      "Yes." He sounded genuinely sorry.   
  
      _The note's author was obvious from the way the paper was folded; Cain would never have bothered to make it this perfect, all angles a carefully matched ninety degrees, corners fitting together to the tolerance of a micron. Though she had known intellectually that this day would come, her heart still lurched and instead of reaching for it, she slid into one of the chairs and looked at it for a while, noting absently how it was placed in the precise center of the table, equidistant from all edges, and held down under a bright yellow mug with violet writing.  
      It was for her, of course; there was her name- her nickname, thankfully; even he was not so formal as to saddle the paper with her given name- neatly printed in the center of the sheet of paper. The first shock over, she thumbed it out resignedly from under the mug and unfolded it.   
      'Prudence dictates that we join the humanitarian efforts in South America without delay, therefore your contributions towards the research, though appreciated, are no longer practical. H.W.'  
      Hallie folded the note back up carefully and tucked it in her book. The mug gleamed sickeningly under the kitchen lights; she pushed it gently off the table with a fingertip and it shattered against the floor into a thousand pieces._  
  
      Flames licked at the faux coal of the wall heater; Hallie watched them flicker absently.   
      "I don't blame you. I knew you were only going to keep me around for so long, but I let myself get too involved, because I didn't know how not to. Staying aloof would have been handy, but you only learn that one through experience- I can hardly hold you at fault. Still, a note. One note, with one sentence on it. Even for you, that's pretty hands-off."   
      "You're one to talk. It's been public knowledge where I spent my last decade and a half, and yet you never wrote."  
      "I did!"  
      "Twice. In the first year. Taken proportionally to the whole, that's extremely close to never."  
      She sighed. "All right, I deserve that. I had always intended to write you more, but I'd sent the second letter out from the campus post office and the chief warden called the university asking who I was. You can imagine how well that went over. The new president of the medical college really wanted to bury all the details of where you'd come from- they actually called me up on disciplinary charges even though I wasn't even in their department. Max was furious; I guess he was worried that if it got out I'd known you, it might harm his career. So that was the end of the letters. I've always regretted that; you were my friend, I should have been strong enough to stand up for you."  
      "Yes, you should have- I would at least liked to have heard about something useful. All you wrote about was how happy you were your doctorate thesis had been accepted."   
      "I must have said _something_ else."  
      The bed dipped as he reached out to the bedside table, then she yelped as something light tapped against her chest.  
      "The facts say otherwise."  
      "You kept them all this time?"  
      "You once told me that being treated like a person makes a nice change. You have no real idea of how right you were."  
      "No, I suppose not."  
      He turned to replace the letters on the nightstand, and as he lay back down she found herself stroking his arm, his chest, the hollow of his throat. Despite the intervening years he still felt familiar, if changed in little ways. The last decade had obviously been hard on him; though he still had that same wiry build she remembered, she could count his ribs without difficulty, and new scars pocked him here and there.  
      He caught her hand and lifted it, traced the outlines with his fingertips as she drew in a quick breath.  
      "How long has it been?" he asked, tone conversational.  
      "A while, " she admitted.  
      "For me, as well."  
      "I can imagine. But it's not like you to want anything without there being a payoff in your research."  
      "Perhaps I just remember that it's the best way to stop you talking."  
      Hallie laughed. "Nice to see that jail hasn't damaged your sense of humor, such as it is."  
      "It's equally good to see that the academic life hasn't stopped you speaking your mind."  
      "I told you before, West, nothing's ever going to shut me up-"  
      His mouth was on hers and the rest of her words were lost, unmourned, in the moments that followed.   
      In the back of her mind, a small voice expressed surprise; West was many things, but never desperate. Then again, she reminded herself, West had never spent years behind bars before, either.   
      "Ah, " he said finally, "Apparently some things do remain the same."  
      "Are you referring to my going silent when you do that, or are you claiming that I'm at the same level of experience I was all those years ago?"  
      "If you want a reply to the second question, I will have to postpone my response until I have more data."  
      "Ah. Empirical study. I can do that."  
      "Can you, indeed?" That same half-mocking, half-interested tone, and this time Hallie grabbed him by the back of the head and kissed the hell out of him.   
      She attempted in the next few minutes to kiss the smugness out of him as well, but she knew going in that, fun as it was, it was a lost cause. West had been her first lesson that underneath a cold exterior did not necessarily beat a warm heart.   
      However, inside every civilized human were animal passions, and no one, no matter how educated or controlled, could sublimate those forever. For his entire adult life he had thrown the weight of that incredible mind into his work and his work alone, disdaining all else in pursuit of his goals. And that drive, which was strong enough to be called madness, had been caged with its owner for well over a decade while he suffered incarceration, torture, privation, threat of death, and that which was the worst of all to him, the interruption of his work. A weaker mind would have bent or broken, which he had not done, but even one stronger still would still need, in this unexpected reprieve, to refresh itself of all it had been deprived.   
      It was a shame, she reflected, that in such a moment the back of her mind could still pontificate, even with his mouth moving to her neck, teeth grazing her collarbone. She let him remove her pajama top, then turned her head and nibbled delicately at his earlobe while her hands did some interesting gymnastics below his waistband. He stopped what he was doing long enough to look at her squarely in the half-light.  
      "You've gotten better at this."  
      She grinned. "I've had a reasonable amount of practice."  
      Her fingers skated around the sweet spot at the small of his back as he divested both of them from their clothing and she considered tactics. On one hand, the man had been in prison for the past fifteen years, and probably deserved the quickest conclusion possible as a simple act of mercy. On the other hand, Simon wasn't due home for another year and a half, and she was damned if she'd waste the only clear opportunity she had between now and then, unless by some miracle the University either gave her a vacation in the tropics or started hiring nubile young men as administrative assistants.   
      'Quality over quickness it is, then.'  
      She slid her knee alongside his waist and used the leverage to push him over until she was straddling him. The covers slipped down her back and off the bed, but neither paid attention.   
      "I thought at first I should finish you off in a hurry, out of deference to your, er, condition, " she began, and reached down to stroke him gently, "But really, I feel like getting the most out of you I can while I have the opportunity. Turnabout is fair play, after all."  
      She tightened her grip and pulled the length of him upright, and slid him inside her in a sudden jolt. His eyes widened and one hand clutched her leg spastically.   
      "This might not be the best means of achieving a marathon session."  
      "Hah, how soon we forget. It takes ages for you to finish like this."  
      "Under normal circumstances, yes. With nearly twenty years of celibacy to contend against, your plan may not be as foolproof as you intend."  
      "Oh ye of little faith. You think I haven't learned anything since we first met?"  
      She raised herself slowly, carefully, and slid back down, grinning as she drew a long surprised moan from his throat.   
      "I won't know that until we're finished."  
      "Bastard." She slid down on him again, and he gasped. She varied the angle and speed to produce as many sound effects as possible, adding in a few tricks with her fingers, and managed to get a yelp, a groan, a very un-Westlike squeak, and an unbelieving curse before he stopped her.  
      "Which one taught you _that?_ "  
      "Do you really want a lecture right now, or do you want to keep enjoying yourself? Don't answer that."  
      His hand slipped to where they were joined. "I won't, if you insist, but I may still need further data to reach a conclusion on your theory."  
      Hallie grinned. "Is that what we're calling it now? I swear, you are the mouthiest son of a bitch that I ever took to bed."  
      "And whose fault is that, hmm? You're the one who posed the original suggestion."  
      "Look where it got me."  
      "Yes, " he said, and began thrumming his fingertips against her, "Look where it got you."  
      Those damnably talented fingers of his were working in a very familiar pattern; apparently even after all this time he remembered exactly how to get her off with a minimum of fuss. She supposed he had the routine written up neatly in a file in the lockbox of his mind. Orgasm was suddenly inevitable, then imminent. She bucked against his knuckles as he kept up the same patient rhythm- how he managed to maintain speed when all her other lovers inevitably sped up in time with her was still a mystery- and wailed as the wave broke and crested. He slowed his action, but kept going until he'd brought her twice more and she grabbed his forearm and gripped it tightly.  
      "Hey, whoa, you need to back it off now for a minute, unless you _want_ me to have a heart attack up here."  
      He ignored this, but stilled his fingers. "Still loud, I see."  
      She shook her hair back our of her eyes. "You love it. Nobody tries that hard to instigate it if they don't."  
      He gave her one of his rare smiles and grazed her again with his knuckles. She shuddered happily and smacked his hand away.  
      "You keep doing that and we'll never get to you."  
      "I don't recall either of us ever being left out." He turned his body carefully, taking her with him until he lay above her.  
      "Looking for a big finish, are we? You never do it this way unless you intend-"  
      West hooked one elbow under her knee and brought her leg up sharply, driving into her until she squealed and grabbed the headboard.  
      "- to do that. Yeah. Big finish, it is-"  
      Since the angle was inconvenient for silencing her with a kiss, he settled for pounding into her as though he was coming off a stay in prison- which was unsurprising, since that was exactly the case. She bit her lip to muffle a scream, and then immediately wondered why. The hour was late, the office building deserted, and no curious onlookers took strolls this far from the center of campus. Besides, she'd woken up the neighbors more than once during Simon's visits. Then it hit her- the setting, the intensity, her partner, all of it had her reacting automatically as though she were still in college and still serving the greater cause of humanity by keeping Herbert West in endorphins. In some sort of roundabout comment about his roommate's vociferous sexual practices, he'd always enjoined her to keep the noise level low unless he was absolutely sure no one was around.   
      Not inaudible, though, just down enough that there were no grounds for a reasonable complaint. She'd called him passive-aggressive once, and would have chuckled at the memory of his face as she said it had she not already been catapulted into the present by coming a fourth time as his knuckles ground against her. Her right hand was locked on his upper arm and she couldn't have loosened her grip if she'd tried, but her left was free, and she slid her fingers to the small of his back, grinning as the breath left his lungs in a surprised whuff. His careful rhythm fell apart and he thrust into her desperately for a few moments while his own orgasm overtook him. Judging from his bared teeth and the deathgrip he had on her leg, she assumed it was just as cataclysmic and as welcome as her own. The events of past two days coupled with this final exertion appeared to be close to a last straw as far as his endurance was concerned, and he collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut.  
      After a moment, Hallie managed to catch her breath enough to speak.   
      "You just love shutting me up, don't you?"  
      Eyes tightly shut, he began to laugh against her shoulder. Somewhat alarmed, Hallie tapped him on the side of the head.  
      "Hey, whoa, everything all right in there?"  
      "Of course, " he said smugly, and withdrew to lay on his side of the bed, "Do I seem displeased?"  
      "Displeased, no, but you've never found my sarcasm that amusing. Frankly, it's scaring me."  
      "A nearly two-decade dry spell is out of character, even for myself, " he said, "Call it a moment of weakness following a long-delayed release. And speaking of, it is certainly gratifying to find that there are certain benefits earned through time and experience."  
      "Indeed. And although the physical ones are certainly pleasant, mainly I'm glad I'm not dumb enough to be in love with you anymore. It's challenging enough just staying your friend."  
      "Then you're ahead of where you once were, Doctor O'Halloran."   
      Hallie rolled her eyes and scrabbled for the covers in the darkness. "I realize this, Doctor West. We both are, I'd imagine. Now shut up already, all right? These days I need my sleep."  
      He chuckled quietly. "You never seemed to need it before. Getting old?"  
      "I suppose I am. My only consolation is that so are you, so stop mentioning it, or I'll start counting your gray hairs. And not the ones on your head."  
      He snorted, and there was silence for a time. Drifting past the edge of wakefulness, Hallie managed one last question. "I suppose you'll be leaving tomorrow."  
      "Obviously. I doubt your students would let a strange man staying in your apartment pass without comment, and attention is what I need to avoid for the time being, at least until my supposed death is made official."  
      "And you won't be able to tell me where you're going, either, or what you're up to when you get there."  
      "I hardly think the authorities will resort to torture to wean an answer from you, should they even think to come here, and I'm sure a letter now and again from a distant friend won't excite comment."  
      "This time, I promise that I'll write back."  
      "If it pleases you, " he said dismissively. He turned over, and she curled up against him.  
      "You're right, by the way- I'd forgotten how nice it is to be treated like a person once in a while."  
      A soft snore was her only answer.  
  
      She was alone when she awoke- not surprising, she thought, given West's track record in that regard. But the first rays of dawn shone in through the windows unfettered by clouds, and the smell of freshly brewed coffee was everywhere, along with the scent of reheated Dim Sum. A pleasant ache made itself known in her muscles, and for the first time in a long time Hallie greeted the new day with something more than thinly-veiled contempt.   
      "Morning, " she said, as she rounded the corner into the kitchen, and West grunted something that sounded like a greeting. He pushed a cup of coffee in her general direction and buried himself in his own mug.  
      "You always were an unstinting fountain of cheer, " she said, and he grunted again and spared her two seconds' worth of glare before returning to his coffee. Hallie grinned and started in on her breakfast.  
      Afterwards, she found him an old Navy peacoat and one of Simon's hats; this combined with the clothes he already had and one of her old traveling bags, filled with a few nondescript toiletries and a book or two, left him just another anonymous Arkhamite awaiting the arrival of Spring. She tucked a small roll of cash in his coat pocket when he wasn't looking and grabbed her car keys from the table.  
      The bus station was indifferently full, and no one gave them a second glance. They waited patiently in line, Hallie chattering away semi-quietly on an endless litany of the health problems of nonexistent relatives and painstakingly detailed descriptions of cute cat tricks all designed to send nearby patrons into various states of coma. After five minutes it was obvious that the plan was working famously; those closest had glazed eyes and those further along edged discreetly away. As she ramped up the medical descriptions and kitten capers she could almost sense people actively attempting to remove them from their brains.  
      When they came to the counter Hallie let West choose his ticket and paid cash without looking at the destination. As they walked towards the ramp she tore up the receipt and dropped the pieces surreptitiously down a drain. West rolled his eyes.  
      "The garbage would have been sufficient. I'm not being pursued by international spies."  
      "Hey, leave me alone, this is the most excitement I've had in years."  
      His bus was ready and loading. He checked his bag with the attendant and turned to Hallie, allowing her to hug him for a moment.  
      She cuffed his shoulder gently. "Good luck. You know what? I'm probably going to miss you a little."  
      The faintest flicker of a smile ghosted across his features. "I'm sorry to hear that, " he said, and stepped onto the bus.


End file.
